Clothing Widows with Dignity

Sewing machines make a huge impact in the lives of women who suffer rejection because of widowhood or leprosy. With these gifts, dignity is restored as they can earn a respectable wage and care for their children.

Vanita looked over the crowd, seeing the faces of many widows whom she loved. She knew they had been through many dark days. Most of the widows there had been widowed because of leprosy, and many had contracted the disease themselves.

As the leader of a Women’s Fellowship, Vanita arranged a gift distribution of sewing machines and pull carts to these women rejected by society.

Knowing the poverty and distress these women faced, Vanita wanted to show them God’s great love by providing them with a means of income that would restore dignity to their lives.

Gifts They Could Never Afford

Garati, a 25-year-old widow, had taken a tailoring class and graduated with success. But she was unable to afford a sewing machine, so her skills were wasted as she struggled to provide for her children. Gratitude filled her heart when she received a sewing machine.

Garati, a 25-year-old widow, had taken a tailoring class and graduated with success. But she was unable to afford a sewing machine, so her skills were wasted as she struggled to provide for her children. Gratitude filled her heart when she received a sewing machine.

“I am very much thankful to the [church] for giving me this sewing machine,” Garati said.

One woman in the crowd was 45-year-old Amolika. Her husband had passed away 25 years earlier, leaving her widowed, the mother of two and affected with leprosy at 20 years old. Over the years, Amolika earned food and shelter for her two daughters by begging in the temples.

At the gift distribution Amolika and her daughter received a sewing machine. Amolika’s daughter had taken a tailoring class, but they could not afford a sewing machine. With tears streaming down her smiling face, Amolika thanked Vanita for the treasured gift.

GFA-supported workers and local dignitaries cared for and honored impoverished widows, many of whom suffer from leprosy, by presenting them with income-producing gifts.